IAF at the GEO XIV Plenary in Washington DC

On 23 – 27 October 2017 the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) community is coming together at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. for GEO Week 2017. GEO Week 2017, consisting of GEO-XIV Plenary, side events and exhibition, highlights and promotes the role, applications and opportunities to use Earth observations (EO) in delivering ‘Insight for a changing world’. With a focus on delivery and impact, GEO Week 2017 explores the use and applications of EO in both the public and private sectors for the benefit of humankind (http://www.earthobservations.org/geo14.php).

The International Astronautical Federation (IAF) is participating GEO Week 2017 with its Executive Director, Christian Feichtinger, heading a delegation of IAF experts in EO, James Graf (Chair of the IAF GEOSS Subcommittee) and Brent Smith and Lyn Wigbels (Members of the IAF GEOSS Subcommittee). IAF had become a Participating Organisation of GEO in 2014 and has through its GEOSS Subcommittee contributed to the global effort to promote Earth Observation for the benefit of humankind by organizing numerous EO events at IAF conferences, including International Astronautical Congresses of recent years. To that end, the IAF has provided a statement at the GEO XIV plenary (see pdf on the right column). IAF is actively contributing to the GEO objective of supporting “A shared vision to realize a future where decisions and actions, for the benefit of humankind, are informed by coordinated, comprehensive and sustained Earth Observation information and services.